28-1 1937 = POP: 4. One built for Dr Richard Archbold's Museum of Natural History planned expedition to New Guinea as [NC777] Guba. Instead, registration was canceled, and it became Sir Hubert Wilkins' search plane for the ill-fated Levaneski Polar flight crew, then went to USSR Navy, and was reportedly destroyed by U-boat shelling in 1942. Three went to USSR along a license to manufacture as GST (Gidro Samolyet Transportnyi), where an estimated 150 were built before the factory was captured by German forces in Oct 1941.

28-2 1937 = The second [NC777] Guba for the Archbold expedition set off from San Diego on 6/2/38, on a global survey of potential oceanic and continental air routes (p: Steve Barinka, Russell Rogers). It arrived back in San Diego on 7/6/39, as the first around-the-world seaplane flight at the equator.

28-3 = No data.

28-4 1939 = Civil PBY-4 with two P&W 1050hp R-1830. POP: 1 to American Export Lines [NC18997] Transatlantic, and 1 to Great Britain.

28-5 1940-42 = Civil production diverted to RAF as 174 Catalina I/IA/II/IIA and Canadian Canso, plus 48 to Netherlands East Indies.

Consolidated PBY-5A post-war luxury conversion for entertainer Herb Shriner even had its own dory slung under the left wing [N68756] (K O Eckland)28-5ACF 1947 (ATC 785, 2-548) = Post-war civil conversions of PBY with two 1050hp P&W Twin Wasp S1 or SC; span: 104'0" length: 67'1" load: 13,000# v: 180/159/69 range: up to 1200. Many conversions of the venerable "Cat" were seen into the '80s as private transports, survey and exploration ships; some refitted with 1700hp R-2600 (as with Canadian firm of Timmins Aviation Ltd, Montreal).

AT-22 1943 = Engineer-trainer version of B-24 and, C-87; redesignated TB-24. POP: 5 [42-10726, 43-30549, -30561, -30574, -30584].B-24 Production Line (Consolidated)Consolidated B-24/17 Sometimes mistaken for B-41, this was a one-time 1943 experiment marrying the nose section of B-17G [42-97772] to B-24 [42-73130] in hopes of combining the qualities of both ships. It didn't work. (unknown mag clip)B-24 Liberator, Privateer (Model 32) - Heavy bomber; 9-10pChwM rg. Isaac M Laddon, using technology gained in Davis wing testing with Model 31. With 18,482 aircraft built, the B-24 was the most-produced US aircraft of WW2, in even greater numbers than the B-17. One of its main virtues was a long operating range, which led to it being used also for other duties including maritime patrol, anti-submarine work, reconnaissance, tanker, cargo and personnel transport (Winston Churchill used one as a transport) in service with AAF, USN, and many Allied air forces (not to mention two captured and used by the Luftwaffe), as well as in post-war civil transport, utility, fire-bomber, and other roles. Orders for production aircraft came from Great Britain and France; however, it was not ready for France by the time of its capitulation, and the French order was diverted to Britain. Built by Consolidated at Fort Worth, Douglas at Tulsa, Ford at Willow Run, and North American at Dallas.

CB-24 1945 = Temporary classification for various models withdrawn from operational status, stripped of armament and adapted to various duties, including utility transport near the end of WW2. Painted in distinctive colors and patterns, they were also used as Group Identity Aircraft to facilitate the assembly of bomber squadrons into battle formations in and above the overcast.

TB-24 (from AT-22) 194? = Conversion of B-24D for specialized advanced training. Armament removed, and six stations added in the fuselage for instruction of engineers in power-plant management as required in B-29 and B-32.

Consolidated B-24G [42-78154] (USAF Museum)B-24G(North American) 1943 = New nose designed to
include a power turret containing two .50 guns for effective frontal protection; length 67'2". The Sperry ball turret became standard equipment on this and following models. POP: 430, plus 8 to RAF as Liberator IV.

B-24H(Consolidated, Douglas, Ford) 1943 = POP: 3,100, included 1 used as Ford prototype for B-24J production and 22 to RAF as Liberator IV.

Consolidated B-24J [42-50697]B-24J, PB4Y-1 Privateer (Convair, Douglas, Ford, North American) 1944 = Revised fuel system and gun turrets, new autopilot and bombsight, anti-icing equipment; length: 67'2" load: 19,500# v: 300/215/95 range: 2100. 4,500 lbs in bombs or depth charges. This was the variation produced in the largest quantity, and was so similar to G and H models that the latter were modified to become -24Js by changing the autopilot and bombsight. POP: 6,678, with 1,174 to USN as PB4Y-1, and 208 converted by Ford and Martin with modified fuel systems as C-109 unarmed "flying gas tanks" to transport fuel to combat areas, plus 1,157 to RAF and RAAF as Liberator B.VI and G.R.VI with six .50-cal guns, two each in nose and dorsal turrets and in waist positions, and four .303 in. guns in a Boulton-Paul tail turret. 16 ex-RAF -24Js, converted in 1948 by Hindustan Aircraft Ltd, remained in service in India until 1967 without a serious accident! SEE ALSO C-87.

Consolidated TB-24L Former C-109 [44-49630] (William T Larkins)B-24L, TB-24L(Consolidated, Ford) 1944 = Similar to B-24J, but with a lightweight tail turret and two manually-operated guns with a wider field of fire. POP: 1,667 (417 by Consolidated, 1,250 by Ford), plus 355 to RAF as Liberator VIII; trainer conversions as TB-24L.

Consolidated B-24M [44-51228]Consolidated B-24M NACA (see text below) [44-41986]B-24M 1944 = Same as the B-24L, except fitted with a new lightweight two-gun power tail turret. A -24M was the 6,725th and final production Liberator. POP: 2,593.[44-41986] was modified by Lewis Research Center with the dorsal airscoop and a GE J31/I-16 jet engine as a test-bed for icing research and measurements between Nov 1945 and July 1949. Note the three vanes in front of the intakethey were for water ingestion tests. The jet pipe was out the back, through the former tailgunner's position. Interestingly, the ship does not appear on the lists of aircraft that NACA used either at Langley, Lewis, Ames, or Dryden ( Ron Billman & Carl Stidsen 4/8/05)

B-24ST 1943 = First single-tail version (so honored by its model initials) was a B-24D with the tail section from a Douglas B-23; ff: 3/6/43. This was later replaced by a Douglas C-54 tail unit and the plane redesignated XB-24K.

Liberator 11 1940 = No B-24 counterpart; export version built to British specifications with P&W R-1830-S3C4G. Eleven .303 gunseight in dorsal and tail Boulton-Paul power turrets, one in the nose, two in waist positions.

Consolidated LB-30A (USAF)Consolidated LB-30 Post-war mod [XC-CAY] (Eddie Coates coll)B-30 1940 = A special designation (temporarily using the canceled Lockheed assignment) for RAF models used as transatlantic ferries between Montreal and Blackpool UK. Similar to XB-24 but with de-icers and without wing slots. POP: 6 as LB-30A [40-696/701] (RAF s/ns AM258/263); first designated LB-30MF ("Mission Française," after an original French contract prior to Germany's invasion). However, all were apparently later reacquired by USAAF, since those s/ns appear on active records (as B-24Ds?).B-32 Production Line (Convair)B-32 (Dominator)* (Model 33, 34) - USAAF long-range heavy bomber generally based on B-24, but with cylindrical fuselage and longer Davis wings. Planned to supplement B-29s, it saw only limited combat, and none survived the post-war scrapping frenzy. * The model name, first suggested as "Terminator," was dropped in 1945 because of complaints from the State Dept about its "harshness."

C-87A 1942 = 16p VIP transport. POP: 3 conversions of B-24D [41-23863, -24159, -24174], and 3 from C-87 [43-30569/30571] which were transferred to USN as RY-1. One AAF model was modified as President Roosevelt's personal transport, Guess Where II, but when another C-87A crashed because of structural problems, the Secret Service forbade FDR to fly in it, and it was never officially used as a presidential transport. However, his wife, Eleanor, used it in tours of South America and the Caribbean, along with many dignitaries, flown extensively without any incidents.

C-87B 1942 - Armed transport project; none built.

C-87C 1943 - Single fin version project; none built.

C-99 (Model 37) SEE Convair C-99.Consolidated C-109 Converted to TB-24L in 1946 [44-49630] (William T Larkins)C-109(Ford, Martin) 1944 = Conversion of B-24J and B-24L into a fuel transort with metal tanks in the nose, and above and in the bomb-bay, holding 2,900 gallons. Developed for transporting fuel from India to China for the B-29s. POP: 199 by Ford. A later version, modified by Martin Co, was fitted with collapsible Mareng fuel cells for duty in Europe. POP: 9.Courier (Model 15) SEE XO-17A.F-7 1943 = Recon version of B-24D, -24H, and -24J.Guardian SEE 11.Liberator Liner SEE UNDER Convair.N2Y - USN version of Kinner Fleet 2. SEE ALSO Curtiss F9C, Waco JW-1.

Consolidated NY-2 Jimmy Doolittle and [NX7918] (Convair)NY-2 1927 (ATC 81) = 220hp J-5; span: 40'0". $6,250-6,285; POP: 181 [A7456/7525, A7693/7707, A7795, A7970/7977, A8013/8017, A8183/8193, A8360/8400], of which 1 to Army for flight testing [27-176]. A civil-registered model [NX7918] was used by Lt James Doolittle in his historic blind-flying demonstration on 9/24/29. In a hooded cockpit, with Lt Ben Kelsey acting as safety pilot, he took-off from Mitchel Field, flew a prescribed course for 15 miles, then landed, all by instruments and without ever seeing the ground. NY Times declared next day: "The demonstration was more than an exhibition of blind flying [skill] and instrument perfection, it indicated that aviation had perhaps taken its greatest single step in safety..."

P2Y-1 1932 = Two R-1820 under the top wing. POP: 23 [A8986/9008], of which 21 converted to P2Y-2, and 1 exported to Colombia in 1932 as P2Y-1C, and in 1935 Japan as P2Y-1J, where it served as an air liner up through WW2.

XP2Y-2 1933 = Modified from P2Y-1 with two Wright R-1820 mounted on the leading edge with NACA low-drag cowlings. POP: 1 [A9008].

PBY Catalina - 7-9pChwMFb/Am; two 900hp P&W R-1830; span: 104'0" length: 65'2" v: 178 range: 2115. Isaac M Laddon et al. Won USN nod in competition with Douglas XP3D-1 flying boat. 3,281 were built on five different production lines as the world's most-produced of its kind1,853 flying boats and 1,428 amphibians. Remaining in service until Jan 1957 in the Naval Reserve. The legend of the "Black Cats" was born when some were painted flat black to fly night operations in the Pacific, performing recon and rescue, mine laying, and dive bombing and torpedo attack missions using star navigation. USN squadron VP-52 between Nov 1943 and June 1944 destroyed or damaged 16 Japanese ships with what was our first "stealth" aircraft, as they were nearly impossible to see flying low at night. Production also by Naval Aircraft Factory as PBN Nomad export models, Canadian Boeing as PB2B, and Canadian Vickers as OA-10 (for USAAF). Canadian licensed manufacture as Canso, of which 3,281 were built. SEE ALSO 28; civil use in the post-war era was equally varied and legendary.

XPBY-1 1937 = POP: 1 [9459], rebuilt and redesignated from prototype XP3Y-1 after it demonstrated its potentials in setting a new world's seaplane record by flying 3,443 miles in 34h:45m from the Canal Zone to Alameda CA 10/14-15/35 (p: LtCdr Knefler McGinnis).

Consolidated PBY-1 (Consolidated)PBY-1 1935 = Torpedo carrier, patrol. Initial production order. $95,000; POP: 60 [0102/0161], the first one a carryover from the second XP3Y-1.

Consolidated PBY-3 (K O Eckland coll)PBY-3 1936 = Improved 1000hp R-1830 Double Wasps, carb air intakes moved to top of engine nacelles. POP: 66 [0842/0907], plus 3 to USSR with a manufacturing license, where about 150 were built in 1940-41 as model GST.

Consolidated PBY-5A Civil conversion (William T Larkins)Consolidated PBY-5A Post-war markings for VP(AM)-3; JATO pod behind rear strut and ASV radar above cockpit (Navy League)PBY-5A, -5B 1940 = Amphibian (signified by the "A" suffix). POP: 1,227, plus 56 to AAF as OA-10. Exports to RAF of 145 PBY-5B as Catalina IB, 36 Canadian Cansos as Catalina IIA, 12 PBY-5A as Catalina III, 11 PBY-5A as Catalina IV, and 70 PBY-5B as Catalina IVA. Although heavier, slower, and with less range than its flying boat version, its versatility was very important to the RAF, and more than half of their PBYs were of this type.

PT-1 Trusty (Model 1) - Army trainer; 2pOB. Refined TW-3 with tandem cockpits. All Army planes went to National Guard units in 1928. USN version NY.

XPT-1 1923 = Unverified, but it is thought this was the enigmatic Dayton-Wright TW-8 with a cowling; possibly [21-1253].

Consolidated PT-1 (Consolidated)PT-1 1923 (ATC 79) = First production; 180hp Wright-Hisso E; span: 34'10" length: 26'9" (?>27'8") load: 707# v: 100/79/51 range: 270 ceiling: 13,450'. $9,800; POP: 221 [25-245/294, 26-226/275, -301/350, 27-108/177], of which 6 to McCook Field for tests [25-245/246, -264, 25-292, 26-327, x], 1 to USN [27-176], and 1 as prototype XPT-2 [27-149]; plus 4 exports to Siam. Early production models had flat turtlebacks, soon replaced by a faired version, and some of the first ones were likely built at the Gallaudet plant in Norwich before production began at Buffalo. ATC was issued in 1928 and was retroactive. It was also cosmetic (likewise with NY-1/-2 and O-17) since military aircraft were not required to obtain one, but Consolidated likely had plans for the civil market at first.